Department of Pathology News

See, Test & Treat Program

On October 5, 2013, the Pathology Department provided same-day Pap test results and patient education to dozens of women who took part in the Annual Dr. Edward S. Greenwald Breast and Cervical Screening Event, held at Montefiore Medical Park.

The event is largely funded by the NYS Cancer Screening Program and offers free mammograms and Pap tests for women over age 40, many of whom are uninsured.

For the first time this year, women ages 21-39 who do not meet criteria for NYC SCP also received free Pap tests and same-day results, thanks to the See Test & Treat Program, funded by the College of American Pathologists (CAP).

“We’re so pleased to take part in this great event and to provide important patient education,” said Michael Prystowsky, MD, PhD, Chairman of the Department of Pathology at Einstein and Montefiore, who led the team, which included Mark Suhrland, MD, professor of pathology and attending cytopathologist, and chief pathology resident Olena Dorokhova, MD.

Patient education was available to all participants, regardless of age.

Seated at one end of the dual-headed microscope that was setup outside the waiting area, Dr. Dorokhova provided patients and their families a birds-eye view of Pap test result samples, explaining the difference between healthy and abnormal cells.

“It’s so interesting to see what’s going on inside,” said Susan Mohan, 48, a Bedford Park, Bronx resident who works in catering and is uninsured.

Seeing the results of a Pap and understanding the test allows the patients to become more involved in their health care - and are more likely to return to a clinic.

“It becomes a real thing for them,” said Dr. Suhrland, who ferried the samples over to the cytology laboratory at Moses for same-day turnaround.

Through See Test & Treat, a growing number of underserved women are gaining culturally sensitive access to free preventative care, with results and follow-up consults delivered the same day. The patient-centered, coordinated approach helps ensure that underserved women gain the early detection advantage and life-saving services that pathologists provide.

“Our real goal is to get people enrolled in the hospital or clinic so they’re not leaving their care until they’re really sick and have to go to the ER. That’s an unproductive way to deliver healthcare,” said Marion Malone, executive director of CAP Foundation.